vedic_kings
01-27-06, 08:05 PM
I see that there is no thread on the rainforest here! Well here it is!
Many of us love to eat hamburgers, hot dogs, bologna, and other items made from beef or red meat. While these foods may taste delicious, they often have a negative effect on the rainforests. In fact, one of the main causes of rainforest destruction in Central and South America is cattle ranching. Cattle ranchers slash and burn the rainforest to make room for cattle pastures. First, the ranchers cut down the trees and set the forest on fire. Then they plant grass and bring in cows to feed on the grass. When the cows are grown, they are slaughtered and turned into cheap beef. The beef is used in fast-food hamburgers, frozen meat products, and canned pet food.
It takes a lot of rainforest land, water, and energy to make a fast-food hamburger. As a matter of fact, fifty-five square feet of rainforest is destroyed for every quarter pound hamburger that comes from a cleared rainforest. That's the size of a small kitchen! Not only that, but since the soil in the rainforest does not contain many nutrients, after a few years of cattle ranching it becomes very difficult to grow anything on the land— even grass. What was once a beautiful, lush, living rainforest becomes a dry, desert-like wasteland. When this happens, even more rainforest is slashed and burned for cattle ranching.
Clearing the rainforest to produce beef also destroys the homes of the animals that live in the rainforest. Without their rainforest homes, many of these animals simply cannot survive and may become extinct. When an animal becomes extinct, it disappears forever like the dinosaurs.
Raising cattle for beef not only damages the rainforests in Central and South America, it also impacts the environment closer to home. Over half of the water used in the United States goes to beef production. In fact, it takes an average of 2,500 gallons of water to produce a single pound of red meat. That's as much water as a typical family uses in a month! With the amount of water it takes to produce one pound of red meat, farmers can grow up to one hundred pounds of grain, which makes a lot of bread, pasta, and cereal. One pound of beef can only feed four people for one lunch, whereas one hundred pounds of grain can feed four people for a month!
Raising cows for beef—whether in rainforest countries or the United States—also adds to climate change or global warming. It takes a lot of fossil fuels (oil, coal, and gasoline) to raise cows, slaughter them, freeze the meat, ship it overseas or across the country, and then transport it to grocery stores and restaurants. The burning of fossil fuels creates a greenhouse gas called carbon dioxide. When cows digest t
heir food, they also release a greenhouse gas called methane. These greenhouse gases trap heat from the sun close to the Earth's surface. When too much heat is trapped, it causes the planet to warm up, which in turn causes dangerous changes in the weather. For instance, less rain may fall in the rainforests, making it difficult for all the trees, plants, and animals that depend on rain to survive. Climate change is a very big problem facing the rainforests and our planet. We must do all we can to stop it from getting worse. One easy way to do that is to eat less red meat!
People in the U. S. eat a large amount of beef. In fact, although we make up less than 5 percent of the world's population, Americans consume almost 25 percent of the world's beef. Medical studies have found that eating too much red meat can cause health problems. Many doctors believe that a plant-based diet (also called a vegetarian or vegan diet) full of fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains is the healthiest way to eat.
Some people choose to eat more chicken, turkey, and fish instead of red meat. While this will help save the rainforests, it is important to know that eating a plant-based diet is the best thing that you can do for the environment.
What You Can Do
If everyone in the United States reduced the amount of beef they ate by half, we would save a lot of energy and water, and rainforests wouldn't need to be cut down for cattle ranching. That would really help save the rainforests and our environment!
There are a lot of ways to eat less beef. You can start by eating more plantbased foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and legumes. Have you ever tried a vegetarian burrito filled with beans, rice, and vegetables? Or a tofu hot dog topped with ketchup, mustard, and relish? Many grocery stores now carry a variety of meat alternatives, including veggie burgers, soy sausage, and soy baloney. You'd be surprised at how tasty beef-free foods can be!
The next time you're at a restaurant, consider ordering something that does not contain beef. You can also talk to your parents about the food your family eats at home. Ask your family if they would try eating one half the amount of beef they normally eat at home in a week. Experiment with this new way of eating for one week and then see if everyone is willing to try it for another week. Remember, small changes at every meal add up to a big difference!
http://www.ran.org/info_center/factsheets/s10.html
Many of us love to eat hamburgers, hot dogs, bologna, and other items made from beef or red meat. While these foods may taste delicious, they often have a negative effect on the rainforests. In fact, one of the main causes of rainforest destruction in Central and South America is cattle ranching. Cattle ranchers slash and burn the rainforest to make room for cattle pastures. First, the ranchers cut down the trees and set the forest on fire. Then they plant grass and bring in cows to feed on the grass. When the cows are grown, they are slaughtered and turned into cheap beef. The beef is used in fast-food hamburgers, frozen meat products, and canned pet food.
It takes a lot of rainforest land, water, and energy to make a fast-food hamburger. As a matter of fact, fifty-five square feet of rainforest is destroyed for every quarter pound hamburger that comes from a cleared rainforest. That's the size of a small kitchen! Not only that, but since the soil in the rainforest does not contain many nutrients, after a few years of cattle ranching it becomes very difficult to grow anything on the land— even grass. What was once a beautiful, lush, living rainforest becomes a dry, desert-like wasteland. When this happens, even more rainforest is slashed and burned for cattle ranching.
Clearing the rainforest to produce beef also destroys the homes of the animals that live in the rainforest. Without their rainforest homes, many of these animals simply cannot survive and may become extinct. When an animal becomes extinct, it disappears forever like the dinosaurs.
Raising cattle for beef not only damages the rainforests in Central and South America, it also impacts the environment closer to home. Over half of the water used in the United States goes to beef production. In fact, it takes an average of 2,500 gallons of water to produce a single pound of red meat. That's as much water as a typical family uses in a month! With the amount of water it takes to produce one pound of red meat, farmers can grow up to one hundred pounds of grain, which makes a lot of bread, pasta, and cereal. One pound of beef can only feed four people for one lunch, whereas one hundred pounds of grain can feed four people for a month!
Raising cows for beef—whether in rainforest countries or the United States—also adds to climate change or global warming. It takes a lot of fossil fuels (oil, coal, and gasoline) to raise cows, slaughter them, freeze the meat, ship it overseas or across the country, and then transport it to grocery stores and restaurants. The burning of fossil fuels creates a greenhouse gas called carbon dioxide. When cows digest t
heir food, they also release a greenhouse gas called methane. These greenhouse gases trap heat from the sun close to the Earth's surface. When too much heat is trapped, it causes the planet to warm up, which in turn causes dangerous changes in the weather. For instance, less rain may fall in the rainforests, making it difficult for all the trees, plants, and animals that depend on rain to survive. Climate change is a very big problem facing the rainforests and our planet. We must do all we can to stop it from getting worse. One easy way to do that is to eat less red meat!
People in the U. S. eat a large amount of beef. In fact, although we make up less than 5 percent of the world's population, Americans consume almost 25 percent of the world's beef. Medical studies have found that eating too much red meat can cause health problems. Many doctors believe that a plant-based diet (also called a vegetarian or vegan diet) full of fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains is the healthiest way to eat.
Some people choose to eat more chicken, turkey, and fish instead of red meat. While this will help save the rainforests, it is important to know that eating a plant-based diet is the best thing that you can do for the environment.
What You Can Do
If everyone in the United States reduced the amount of beef they ate by half, we would save a lot of energy and water, and rainforests wouldn't need to be cut down for cattle ranching. That would really help save the rainforests and our environment!
There are a lot of ways to eat less beef. You can start by eating more plantbased foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and legumes. Have you ever tried a vegetarian burrito filled with beans, rice, and vegetables? Or a tofu hot dog topped with ketchup, mustard, and relish? Many grocery stores now carry a variety of meat alternatives, including veggie burgers, soy sausage, and soy baloney. You'd be surprised at how tasty beef-free foods can be!
The next time you're at a restaurant, consider ordering something that does not contain beef. You can also talk to your parents about the food your family eats at home. Ask your family if they would try eating one half the amount of beef they normally eat at home in a week. Experiment with this new way of eating for one week and then see if everyone is willing to try it for another week. Remember, small changes at every meal add up to a big difference!
http://www.ran.org/info_center/factsheets/s10.html